Tama 1947: Nissan’s first electric car

Electric vehicles are not a new idea. In postwar Japan, where oil was scarce but hydropower was relatively abundant, the government promoted research and development in this area. Nissan engineers rose to the challenge with the Tama electric vehicle.

Launched in 1947, the Tama was Nissan’s first electric car. Mainly used by taxi companies, it had replaceable lead-acid batteries that gave it a top speed of 35.2 km/h and a range of 96.3 kilometers . These results are modest by today’s standards, but they made Tama the best performer in government tests. By 1950, the oil supply had stabilized and Tama was discontinued, but Nissan’s electric vehicle research continued.

The Tama was fully restored to original 1947 specification and has been back on the road since 2010 when the production model of the “NISSAN LEAF” electric vehicle was released. *Prince Motors, Ltd.: Merged with Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. in 1966.

However, studies have shown that one of the reasons why electric vehicles have not sold well in Japan is the great popularity of hybrid vehicles. At the same time, Japanese automakers have yet to introduce many EV models and this is what the Nissan company is currently investing in.